The Catholic church in Connecticut is ramping up its effort to stop a bill that would permit physicians to prescribe a lethal dose of medication to help terminally ill patients end their lives.

On Monday at 11 a.m., Michael C. Culhane, executive director of the Connecticut Catholic Public Affairs Conference, the church's lobbying arm, will deliver petitions bearing more than 21,000 signatures of people who oppose House Bill 7015. The petitions will be presented to the legislature's judiciary committee, which held a hearing on the measure earlier this month.

Catholic leaders are part of a broad coalition against the bill, which has come up in the Connecticut legislature in each of the past three years. In addition to the church, the measure has drawn sharp criticism from members of the medical establishment, including the Connecticut State Medical Society, as well as hospice providers and advocates for people with disabilities.